Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Memento homo: quia pulvis es et in pulverem reverteris.

From dust we are made, to dust we shall return.

Ash Wednesday is about our mortality, the fleeting nature of life, and the need for humility and perspective in our lives.

And in the voice of the priest, I also hear the words of Carl Sagan, for we are made of star stuff. One day, the makings of stars we shall be again.

See the majesty and grandeur and power of the Lord.

We are made of the dust scattered at the beginning of time, spread among all the worlds that have been and shall be.

And God so loved us, the creations of dust, that God sent a Christ, that God cares enough about us to ask us to repent and return to the Lord, that the opportunity for reconciliation is eternally created.

See the grace and compassion and love of our God.